ElevenLabs Unveils iOS App for AI-Powered Audio Narration from Any Text

If you've ever started reading an article on your iPhone only to get distracted by a drive, walk, or chores, ElevenLabs has a solution: the new “ElevenLabs Reader: AI Audio” app. Launched by former Palantir engineers, this iOS app specializes in converting text files or web links into audio narration, perfect for multitasking—whether you're barbecuing, cooking, or tidying up.

Currently, the app offers text-to-speech functionality in English, with plans to introduce support for ElevenLabs' 29+ languages soon. You can download the app for free from the Apple App Store, but ensure you have iOS 15 or newer.

To start using the app, sign in with your existing ElevenLabs account or create a new one using your email, Google, or Apple account. Upon logging in, you’ll find a selection of pre-loaded public domain stories like “Cinderella,” “Goldilocks and the Three Bears,” and “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.” Simply tap on a story to access the text and hear the AI narration, accompanied by an interactive highlighter that follows along with the spoken words.

For those seeking more than fairy tales, the app allows users to “Add content” by writing their own text, importing URLs, or selecting files from the iOS Files app. You can seamlessly share links from the Safari browser directly to the ElevenLabs Reader app via the iOS Share Sheet, eliminating the need for copying and pasting.

Users can also adjust narration speed between 0.8x and 2x by tapping the speed indicator in the lower right corner, though it lacks an easy dropdown or scroll menu for selection. Additionally, the app features 11 voice options, including various accents and genders.

During testing, uploading a PDF stripped visuals and displayed only text, but revealed some formatting issues that caused awkward pauses in narration. I did encounter occasional error messages while converting text to audio, but overall, the AI voiceover was impressively fluid, accurately handling a range of content, from media articles to lengthy manuscripts.

One important concern to address is whether ElevenLabs collects or stores any text data submitted through the app, and whether such data is encrypted for privacy. We have reached out for clarification and will update once we receive a response.